User blog:Grannelle/Yellow Miro-K – A Collector’s Perspective
Gogo’s Crazy Bones North American distributor, JDNA, has released a second run of the wildly popular character, Miro-K, only this time in yellow. The original red was limited to a run of 5000 pieces, some of which were retained by corporate to be distributed as promotionals, the rest given away in a profile-raising event wherein one million single packs of Series 1 figures were made available at Walgreens stores for free. By luck of the draw, a small percentage of recipients became much envied owners. Now, a couple of years later, the original piece has become so coveted that the collectible is commanding prices of up to $100.00 on eBay, though obtainability is sporadic. The yellow Miro-K, v2.0 if you will, is also being pimped as a limited edition – only this time, everyone has a shot at being possessors. Target stores are the exclusive vendors of the 18 pack, every one of which contains the new Gogo. Why this was done is at best speculative, though presumably JDNA wanted to market the ten dollar package with a bonus as an incentive to purchasers. The product contains 2 each of the Series 1, 2, and 3 3-Packs, along with the yellow Miro-K, packaged as a Series 4 single pack. I am a collector; a rabid hoarder, in fact. I own 3 of the original reds, along with a plethora of other examples: every figure in Series 1, 2, and 3 (though not every color instance… yet), multiples of all of the Wanted/Most Wanted Series 1 characters, the collector cases, all 5 editions of the silver tins, both the gold series 1 and 2 tins, the Most Wanted lunch box, and I’m planning to purchase a Mr. Peako and another red Miro-K soon. I’m by no means young – old enough to be the grandfather of the typical marketing demographic, in fact. I collect them because I believe their value, which lately has appreciated significantly, will continue to increase in years to come. I consider them an investment. So how do I feel about the release of the Yellow? Frankly, making it so easy to acquire dilutes the worth. No doubt there won’t be enough Yellows to satisfy every single fan, but it’s hard to imagine that the Yellow will ever achive the inherrent value of the Red.I’m compelled to add a few to my collection, for the sake of completeness, if nothing else. Yet I am loathe to consider it as precious as even a Wanted. Such widespread convenience weakens the marketability. But perhaps that isn’t the ultimate motive behind JDNA’s move. Maybe they are simply responding to their target market’s desire to own something so widely cherished as the original. If so, I don’t think that’s such a bad thing; in point of fact, I believe it shows concern and caring for their customers. Something that benefits their client base, and that amounts to an act the world could use a lot more of. In light of such corporate social responsibility, I suppose that perhaps I can find a place of honor for this interloper, this gatecrasher; welcoming it into my little hobby with an understanding that while it may never achieve the mythos of the original, it still has purpose and value. Besides, there might even be another Wanted/Most Wanted in the mix. Category:Blog posts Category:Extremely Rare